Citadel of Conjurers
The Citadel of Conjurers, originally known as Dun-Orthass, was a dark tower, located within the foothills of the Earthspur Mountains at the mouth of the Moaning Gorge, that was built in the final years of the Narfelli empire. Description The citadel was constructed from black stone. Beneath the tower proper was a labyrinthine series of secluded chambers and catacombs that were believed to hold a number of artifacts and treasures from Narfell. Deep within these subterranean passageways was the Hall of the Hidden Throne, a massive demoncyst that formed around the ruined palace of the demon prince Eltab, which had been wrenched from his lair in the Abyss by the Nar demonbinders. The adamantine binding was a powerful calling circle that bound Eltab to Toril, and maintained a permanent connection between the fiends of the Hidden Layer to the lands of former Narfell. It was believed that only the legendary greatsword of Rashemen, Hadryllis, could shatter this binding. The sages of Faerûn identified the citadel as a powerful evil node. Faerûnian demonologists and experts of fiendish lore believed the halls of the citadel to be infested with demonic activity. History The citadel was constructed in the Year of the Starry Shroud, −153 DR, built around the Hall of the Hidden Throne, in the waning years of ancient Narfell. The site of the tower was positioned over the demoncyst that tethered Eltab to the Prime Material plane; it had been conjured in the Year of the Stone Giant, −160 DR by Nentyarch Rheligaun, and the empire's demonbinders. When the Great Conflagration erupted between Narfell and Raumathar the following year, the Nentyarch and many Nar refugees fled to the citadel and met some unknown fate. It was believed that many of them were hunted down and sealed away by vindictive Raumathari battlemages who sought vengeance upon their former countrymen. Some time before the Year of the Black Marble, −148 DR, the secrets of the adamantine binding were revealed to the Nentyarch, either by fiendish whispers that were directed through the Crown of Narfell or by the Demon Prince Orcus himself. Eltab was released from the bindings beneath the citadel and let loose upon the countries of the Unapproachable East. Throughout the ages, many Impilturan heroes, among them King Sarshel "the True" and King Nord, walked the dark halls of the citadel and returned to the kingdom and shared their tales. Before he ascended as king, Sarshel Elethlim defeated the demonic army of the balor Ndulu at the citadel in the Year of Visions, 731 DR, ending both the Fiend Wars and the Triad Crusade. The brave paladin ventured into the tower and destroyed the artifact known as the Crown of Narfell. This act weakened Orcus' influence over the region, scattered Ndulu's demons and released the souls of the deceased Nentyarchs that were trapped within the crown. Over the next 50 years, Ndulu collected these errant spirits, bound them to the newly forged Moaning Crown of Ndulu and raised another army of succubi and glabrezu. The demon general was stopped at the citadel once again, in the Year of the Moaning Gorge, 786 DR, by the Paladin Princes of Impiltur. Ndulu was defeated once and for all in the Battle of Moaning Gorge and banished through a vortex portal to the Abyss. The Moaning Crown was left on Toril, indestructible by any means known to the Impilturan knights or wizards. Prince Nord ventured deep into the citadel, locked it away and emerged from its dungeons after a tenday. Upon his return, he called upon the royal mages to reaffirm the arcane wards upon the citadel. During the final years of the Heltharn Dynasty, in the Year of the Rogue Dragons, 1373 DR, Eltab returned to the Citadel of Conjurers after over 400 years of imprisonment and manipulation in the southern realm of Thay. Appendix References Category:Towers Category:Locations in the Moaning Gorge Category:Locations in the Earthspur Mountains Category:Locations in Impiltur Category:Locations in the Unapproachable East Category:Locations in Northeast Faerûn Category:Locations in Faerûn Category:Locations on Toril Category:Locations